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(No Model.)

J. RIEDL. DAMPER FOR MECHANICAL MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS. No. 580,425.

Patented Apr. 13, 1897.

Fig.1.

Fig. 2.

4/z zzwm UNITED STATES PATENT GEEICE.

J OIIANN RIEDL, OF LEIPSIC, GERMANY.

DAMPER FOR MECHANECAL. MUSECAL HNSTRUMENTS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 580,425, dated April18, 1897.

Application filed October 5, 1896.

To all whom it may concern/.-

Be it known that I, JoHANN RIEDL, a sub ject of the Emperor of Germany,and a resident of Leipsic, in the Empire of Germany, have inventedcertain new and useful Improvements in Dampers for Mechanical MusicalInstruments, of which the following is a specification.

In the improved damping arrangement the point of the vibratory tongue iscaught between the two elastic ends of the damper for thepurpose ofdamping, so that it is interrupted suddenly in its vibrations.

In the annexed drawings, Figure 1 is a sectional View illustrating thearrangement of the dampers D, supported below the tongue. Fig. 2 showsan arrangement in which the damper is supported above the tongue. Figs.3 and 4 are side and end elevations, respectively, showing the damper ona larger scale.

Fig. 1 illustrates the moment in which by the movement of themusic-sheet N a tooth of the operating-wheel R touches the tongue S, inorder to make it sound.

In Fig. 2, showing the inverted arrangement of the damper, isrepresented the moment when the wheel R, propelled by the music-sheet N,presses the damper D forward, so that it comes into the dampingposition.

The damper has the form shown in Figs. 3 and 4:. It consists of aspring-operated body D, with the two elastic ears L and L and aprojection B for its operation by the teeth of the playing-Wheel. Thetwo ears L and L are bent apart, so that the tongue S, as in Fig. 4, canenter easily between them and be limited in its vibrations between theears of the damper.

The action is as follows: The wheel R is turned by means of the musicsheet and Serial No. 607,904. (No model.)

presses with one of its teeth against the projection B of the damper, sothat the damper is brought forward against the tongue. The damper swingsin the one case from the front and from above or in the other case fromthe front and from below against the tongue and damps the latter bycatching it between its elastic ears L U. V] hen the tooth of the wheelpasses off the projection B, the damper moves back from the tongue,which is thus released from the damper, whereupon the tongue is operatedin the known manner by the toothed wheel E. This arrangement allows alsoa very easymounting of the playing-wheels R, which can be arranged looseupon an axle, while they can never move in relation to the dampelybeingsituated between the ears L L of their respective dampers. Thus thedirecting of the dampers is completely avoided.

I claim as my invention in a mechanical musical instrument- 1. Thecombination with a vibrating tongue of a damper having elastic endsadapted to catch the tongue between them and by limiting its movementprevent it from vibrating.

2. The combination of a series of vibrating tongues and a series ofdampers each consisting of a body I) with ears L L and a projection Bwith a series of toothed wheels R adapted to operate said tongues anddampers and situated each between the ears L L of the respective damper.

In witness whereof I have signed this specification in presence of twowitnesses.

JOHANN RIEDL.

"Witnesses:

RUDOLPH FRIOKE, OTTO II. DOEDERLEIN.

